Pedal poney



March 28, 1961 Filed April 8, 1959 W. D. GERMICK PEDAL PONEY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR. Wu. LARD D. GERMIOK March 28, 1961 w. D. GERMICK 2,976,835

PEDAL PONEY I Filed April 8, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

WILLARD D. GERMICK 2,976,835 PEDAL PONEY Willard D. Germick, P.0. Box 459, Doylestown, Pa., assignor of one-tenth to Gadget-Of-The-Month Club, Inc., North Hollywood, Calif., a corporation of California Filed Apr. 8, 1959, Ser. No. 804,948

2 Claims. (Cl. 115-26) This invention relates to amusement devices and more particularly to a manually driven water vehicle.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a pedal-operated water vehicle, which will support a person for movement within a body of water in an amusing and pleasant manner.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a pedal-operated water device having self-contained means for steering the unit as it is propelled through the water.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a water vehicle of the above type that is extremely safe in use, can be readily deflated and packed in a small storage area when not in use, and which can be conveniently transported from one place to another.

Other objects of the invention are to provide a pedal pouey bearing the above objects in mind which is of simple construction, has a minimum number of parts, is inexpensive to manufacture and efiicient in operation.

For other objects and for a better understanding of the invention, reference may be had to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a pedal poney made in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a front elevational view shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a top plan and view of the pedal poney shown in Figure 1; and

Figure 4 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of cermain parts of the present invention.

Referring now more in detail to the drawing, a water vehicle 10 made in accordance with the present invention is shown to include an inflatable main body portion 12 having a simulated head 14 which resembles a pony. A valve 13 provides a convenient means for inflating and deflating the main body section 12. A pair of side plates 16 are secured, one on each side of the main body portion 12, and define downwardly opening pockets which receive the uppermost extremities of a pair of side arms 18 that depend downwardly to a level beneath the main body portion 12. The lowermost ends of the side arms 18 support a substantially cylindrical case 20 which has the sidewall thereof removed adjacent to the lowermost portion thereof, to define an opening 22 which will allow the set of rotor blades 24 carried upon an axle 26 to produce a paddled action with the water beneath the main body portion 12. The casing 20 is secured to the side arms 18, such as by rivets 20. The rotor blades 24 are driven by pedals 30 secured to the outermost ends of a pair of pedal cranks 28 that extend in diametrically opposite directions from the main-shaft 26. A transversely extending plate 19 underlying the main body portion 12 and secured to the side arms 18 provides a saddle-like mounting for the main body portion, so as to relieve the pressure exerted by the side arms 18 against the plates 16. Straps 20 are provided to secure the paddle assembly to the body 12, but

States Patent 2,976,835 Patented Mar. 28, 1961 are readily releasable to eifect disassembly of the pants for storage purposes.

As is more clearly shown in Figure 1 of the drawing, another pair of pocket plates is secured to the head portion 14 of the main body section, one upon each side thereof. Each of these pockets 32 receives the uppermost ends of a pair of arms 34 of a yoke 36 that has a thumbscrew 38 for releasable engagement with the upper end of a rudder stem 40 that extends through a bearing tab 42 that is integral with the front end of the main body section 12, since the rudder 44 disposed beneath the lowermost extremity of the unit may be steered through the water by means of a'pair of laterally outwardly extending handles 46 secured to each one of the arms 34.

A pair of auxiliary float members 50 are secured, as by flexible straps 48, to the opposite sides of the main body section 12 to provide lateral stability of the unit in use.

The operation and use of this device will now be more readily understood. After the main body section 12 and head portion 14 are inflated by means of the valve stem 13, the paddle unit is attached to the lower portion thereof and is secured in place by means of the straps 20. Also, the rudder 44 and the yoke 36 are assembled by means of the thumbscrew 38, after applying it to the front portion of the inflated unit, whereby the outwardly extending handles 46 may be used to steer the device as the pedals 30 are actuated. Of course, this unit can be constructed in any desired size, and of any desired material. However, flexible sheet material has been found to be particularly suited for this purpose. All of the rigid parts, such as the arms 18, yoke 36, and of the like are preferably constructed from wood to increase the buoyancy of the assembly.

While various changes may be made in the detail construction, it shall be understood that such changes shall be within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to protect by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A pedal-operated water toy, comprising, in combination, a buoyant main body member including an elongated cylindrical member having a simulated head portion extending upwardly and forwardly from one end thereof, a pedal-operated drive means depending from said main body member and including a pair of rigid side arms, a pair of plates, with one secured to each side of said main body members slidably receiving the upper end of each of said arms therewithin, a paddle wheel rotatably supported upon the opposite ends of said arms, and pedal crank means carried by said paddle wheel for efiecting rotation thereof, a substantially cylindrical easing carried by said opposite ends of said side arms and substantially enveloping said paddle wheel, a peripheral portion of said cylindrical casing defining a downwardly opening compartment providing access of said paddle wheel to the water supporting said buoyant main body member, manually adjustable rudder means carried by said main body member and including a bearing portion integral with said one end of said main body mem* her, a rudder having a rudder stem rotatably supported within said bearing portion, a yoke having a pair of arms releasably engaged with said head portion of said main body member at one end, the opposite end of said arms being releasably secured to said rudder stem, and

a pair of laterally outwardly extending handles with one 2. The combination according to claim 1, wherein said auxiliary stabilizing float means comprises a pair of substantially spheroidal buoyant members and releasable portion.

UNITED STATES PATENTS Sebeto Aug. 16, 1921 Protcau Mar. 6, 1928 Galkin Apr. 27, 1943 Hurt July 23, 1946 Madden-I June 21, 1955 

